THE AZORES
world the eye desired to reach but could
not. They left one wondering what was
beyond. But Sete Cidades is a complete
painting, placed in a wonderful frame
the painting of a little village among the
pines, resting peacefully on the edge of
two beautiful lakes. That is all!
A LITTLE OF EVERYTHING
"We live happily. We have a little of
everything on this island," remarked a
resident of this city.
He was right. St. Michaels is a little
world in itself, and the Azoreans have a
little of everything. They raise their
own wine and tea and have their own
mineral water and thermal baths; they
have their own tobacco and manufacture
their own cigars; they cultivate large
quantities of sugar-beet and manufacture
their own sugar. The rich volcanic earth
and humid, but healthful, climate lend
themselves to the cultivation of great
varieties of agricultural products, includ
ing vegetables and fruits of the temper
ate and tropical zones. Twenty-one thou
sand head of cattle graze in the hills and
help to form one of the principal indus
tries of the islands, the manufacture of
cheese.
The sea furnishes a livelihood for a
large number of its inhabitants. Thou
sands of lobsters are exported to the
Continent.
The island is covered with a network
of roads, over which 150 automobiles
travel for pleasure and business.
In the year before the war St. Michaels'
exports were valued at $1,839,954. For
a small island home, 41 miles long, this
is a record worthy of note.
HORTA A CABLE CENTER FOR THE WORLD
Santa Maria, the second island of the
eastern district, is much smaller than St.
Michaels. On a clear day its outline may
be discerned from St. Michaels. Villa
do Porto, on the Bay of Santa Luzia, is
the largest town. This island furnishes
much of the red volcanic clay that is used
in the manufacture of all kinds of pot
tery, such as the porous water bottles
that keep the water cool, vases, jars, and
other receptacles, some of which are very
artistically designed. The mountains of
this island range from 1,700 to 1,900 feet.
Of the central group, Fayal is the most
important. The city of Horta is the prin
cipal port. It has a well-protected har
bor and is the great cable station of the
Atlantic. Nine cables connect the Azores
with all parts of the world. A message
has been sent around the world from
New York via Horta in 1 minutes.
The lace workers of Fayal are famous
for their skill in making a beautiful drawn
work called "crivo."
The patterns of animals used 60 years
ago came from Brazil and are of primi
tive, medieval design. One lace expert
stated that these designs date back to the
fourteenth century. They were probably
carried from Portugal. to Brazil in the
sixteenth century. But the Brazilian
meshes were coarser than the present
crivo work, which has extremely fine
meshes.
These meshes, forming the groundwork
into which the patterns are woven by
hand, are always square. They are so
fine and the work so delicate that it takes
four months to make a five-inch border
for a piece one yard square. Today pro
miscuous patterns are used as well as the
old animal reproductions.
SPANISH INFLUENCE SEEN IN TERCEIRA
The islands of Pico, Terceira, Sao
Jorge, and Graciosa lie close to Fayal.
Pico is separated from Fayal by a narrow
channel, only five miles wide.
Terceira is the most interesting of this
group from an historical point of view.
A naturally fortified place, Angra, the
picturesque capital, was the central point
of battles and political disturbances of by
gone times. The castle of S. Joao Ba
tista, the old Spanish fortification built
on the slope of Monte Brazil, is an in
teresting relic of the seventeenth century.
The massive walls of this castle extend
down to the sea front and to the edge of
the city.
To this day Terceira shows traces of
the domination of Spain over Portugal in
the latter part of the sixteenth and the
first half of the seventeenth centuries
The short jacket, tight trousers, and Span
ish style of hat distinguish the inhab
itants of Angra from those of the other
islands.
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